


Keep it Awkward

by sinshine



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Established Relationship, M/M, Sexual Content
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-13
Updated: 2017-08-13
Packaged: 2018-12-14 18:13:52
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,025
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11788686
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sinshine/pseuds/sinshine
Summary: Lance thought vaguely of what it would be like for them to wake up together in his family's house in Cuba. He recalled the distant sound of waves coming from the beach that was only a few blocks away. The smell of fresh coffee that would fill the entire house shortly before sunrise. Keith in his arms, kissing Lance softly to wake him.5 times they accidentally say "I love you" and 1 time they say it on purpose.





	Keep it Awkward

**Author's Note:**

> Hey, this is my first fic for the Voltron fandom! I'm a sucker for space gays.

-1-

  
  


“You don't ever think about how weird it is?” Lance asked as he pulled the sheet up to cover them both. He turned onto his side and wrapped his arm around Keith's chest to pull him closer, wriggling until they were curled snugly together. “I mean, I know that technically you need air for sound to actually work, but space is like _weirdly_ silent sometimes, right?”

“In space, no one can hear you scream.” Keith laughed softly. It wasn't that funny, but Keith laughing at his own joke made Lance laugh.

They were quiet for a few moments. Keith's breathing became slow and rhythmic, indicating that he was about to fall asleep. Lance pressed his nose to the back of his neck and hoped that Keith wouldn't think that he was doing something as cliché as smelling his hair (which was definitely what he was doing). When he didn't react, Lance sighed and nuzzled his face into Keith's hair.

“You okay?” Keith mumbled drowsily. He held Lance's arm against his chest with both of his own. “You're tense.”

Lance kissed the back of his head. “I'm just... thinking, I guess.”

“Don't hurt yourself.”

Lance _hmph!_ 'd indignantly and blew cool air behind his ear. Keith shivered and swatted back halfheartedly, managing only to sort of pat him on his shoulder. Lance smiled and pressed a kiss to his neck.

"I still think about my family. A lot. I thought I was homesick in the garrison, but this is different,” Lance confessed in a whisper. “At least I got care packages from my mom sometimes. I wonder if she-- never mind.”

Lance shifted lower so that he could rub his face on Keith's shoulder. “Sorry. Just feeling sappy and lame, I guess. I mean, at least I know that my family is relatively safe on Earth. Not like Pidge. I should be glad that-”

“You're fine.” Keith's fingers trailed lightly up and down Lance's hand, tracing the shape of his bones. “I can't really relate, but I get it. You don't need to think that you shouldn't feel something just because someone else has got it worse. Things that suck can still suck, or something. So-” he paused to yawn- “So go the fuck to sleep.”

Lance pressed his face against Keith's neck again and considered how fortunate he was. Out of all the people on earth- or even out of all the people in the universe- he had been lucky enough to get stuck in the middle of an interstellar war with his former rival and current snuggle buddy. Lance hugged Keith tightly, then relaxed his muscles and closed his eyes. He focused on the sound of Keith's steady breathing and the gentle rise and fall of his chest. Lance slowed his own breathing to match and felt himself begin to drift off.

“It sucks a lot less with you here,” Lance murmured. Keith didn't respond and had already begun to snore a little.

Lance thought vaguely of what it would be like for them to wake up together in his family's house in Cuba. He recalled the distant sound of waves coming from the beach that was only a few blocks away. The smell of fresh coffee that would fill the entire house shortly before sunrise. Keith in his arms, kissing Lance softly to wake him (because Keith always woke up first).

“ _Te amo_.”

Keith's eyes shot open. He tried to lie as still as possible, but there was no calming the rapid beating of his heart. He wouldn't be able to fall asleep for a few more hours, but Lance slept on soundly.

  
  


-2-

  
  


Lance caught Keith on his way out of the hangar. He tugged gently on his hand so that he would walk slower, letting them fall behind the others. Allura, Hunk, and Pidge were polite enough to not question it and continued ahead without them.

“Are you okay?”

“Yes?” Keith quirked an eyebrow. The battle at the Galra outpost had gone smoothly. They had formed Voltron without a hitch.

However, the thing about forming Voltron was that every time they did it, they became more in tune with each other. Pidge had commented on it before, explaining something about brainwaves and psychic patterns and whatever. And Pidge wasn't wrong, but Lance felt that his connection with Keith was somehow stronger. He had sensed that something was troubling Keith-- well, maybe 'troubling' was the wrong word. It was difficult to describe, but the feeling Lance had gotten from him, underneath the link they usually had during a fight, was sort of like having a pebble stuck in your shoe. It was like something was bothering Keith, but it wasn't big enough to unsettle him.

Lance decided that it was noteworthy simply because Keith, who liked to complain about everything, had said nothing about it.

“Are-” Lance cleared his throat- “Are _we_ okay?”

“Yes?” Keith noticed the panic rising in Lance's eyes and quickly corrected himself. “ _Yes._ What's this about?”

“Uh, nothing, I guess.” Lance shrugged sheepishly. “I thought I felt something in your head hole.”

“I hate it when you call it that,” Keith groaned. “Look, I really wanna take a shower. Can we talk in your room after?”

“Yeah, yeah.” Lance laughed, feeling lighter. He bent forward to kiss Keith briefly on the lips. “See you.”

“Love you, too.”

They stared at each other. Lance was going red in the face, but Keith had turned pale.

“Wait, what?”

“But you- you said--” Keith stammered.

“I said 'see you.'” Lance laughed nervously. “But, uh, if we're--”

“You said it first!” Keith snapped.

“I did not!” Lance shot back.

“Yes, you did!” Keith insisted frantically. “You just don't remember because you're a stupid heavy sleeper-”

“Don't you bring my healthy sleeping habits into this!” Lance was quickly losing track of what this conversation was actually about.

“Then, it doesn't count! _This_ doesn't count!”

“Fine!” Lance threw up his hands. “Good! I don't want it to count!”

“Good!”

“Fine!”

“Fine!”

They lingered awkwardly for a few seconds, then Keith spun on his heel and began to stomp quickly down the hall.

“Are you still coming over later?” Lance yelled after him.

“Obviously!” Keith shouted back without slowing his pace.

  
  


-3-

  
  


The back of Keith's knees hit the edge of the mattress and he fell onto the bed, pulling Lance down on top of him. Their teeth clicked and Lance laughed before resuming their kiss. Keith could feel him smile against his lips so he nipped at them with his teeth, at the same time running his hands down Lance's bare chest. When he reached the top of his pants, Keith tugged on Lance's belt loops to bring their hips closer together. Lance moaned into his mouth and one of his hands gripped Keith's hair and gave it a sharp tug. Keith tipped his head back and gasped, his body arching to push up against Lance's as he felt lips and teeth at his throat.

“ _Lance_ ,” Keith sighed his name and it was at once both a plea and an adulation.

“Hmm?” Lance hummed as he sucked a mark onto Keith's neck. It would be too high to hide under a shirt collar.

“Don't stop.” Keith's hand slipped between their hips to rub Lance through the front of his jeans.

Lance groaned and pulled back, propping himself on his elbows so that he could look at Keith. His black hair was elegantly disheveled (Lance was annoyed by this even as he thought it was also incredibly hot) and his face was flushed, but his dark, lidded eyes were steady as they gazed into his own.

“Are you sure?” Lance asked, having understood his implication. He licked his lips.

“Did I stutter?” Keith tried to look intimidating but succeeded only in producing a sulky pout.

“No,” Lance smiled fondly at him, “I just wanted to double check. This strikes me as a conversation that we probably should have had before getting half-naked.”

“Shut up,” Keith said in a tone that was too affectionate to be sufficiently threatening. “I'm gonna need you to do something more productive with that mouth.”

“Ooh, you sweet talker.”

Lance kissed him once more on the lips before sliding lower on the bed. He made a trail of open-mouthed kisses down Keith's chest and stomach, enjoying the way goosebumps rose up on his skin. But when he pulled down the zipper on Keith's pants, a muffled moan caught Lance's attention.

Keith had propped himself up on an arm to watch Lance, but he seemed a little too intense. A hand was clasped firmly over his mouth to stifle any sounds he made. Lance couldn't keep himself from grinning.

“Is this your first time?”

Keith looked away, turning his head so that Lance caught sight of how very red his ears were.

“Bingo.”

“Shut up,” Keith said lowly, still not meeting his eyes.

Lance reached out and gently tugged Keith's hand away from his face. He kissed Keith's palm and then placed his hand on top of his own brown hair. Keith chewed on his lower lip and looked at him questioningly.

“You control the pace, okay?”

Keith nodded and he awkwardly carded his trembling fingers through his hair. A few moments later though, both of Keith's hands were anchored in Lance's hair and he keened loudly, head thrown back against the bed. Lance had apparently taken his command to 'do something more productive with that mouth' as a challenge. Keith gasped as his tongue did something spectacular and it was only Lance's grip on his hips that kept him from lurching away from the bed.

“Ah, f-fuck! _Lance..._ ”

Lance moaned and wondered if it was possible to get off on just the way Keith said his name. He used his free hand to reach inside of his own pants and touch himself.

“I'm so close,” Keith whined and tugged insistently on Lance's hair. His blush had spread from his face to his chest and shoulders as well.“I need you, Lance. Kiss me, please, kiss me.”

Lance allowed Keith to pull him back up the bed and into a desperate, hungry kiss. His hand fumbled but then wrapped around both of them. Keith groaned as Lance stroked them together, hips bucking into his touch, and then went suddenly quiet as his body shuddered. A cry caught in Keith's throat as he came, his arms clinging tight around Lance's shoulders. The sight of Keith beneath him looking thoroughly ravished- with sweat sticking his hair to his forehead and mouth open and panting- was enough to push Lance over the edge. He kissed Keith hard as he pumped himself through his own orgasm.

Lance collapsed heavily onto the bed. He lay next to Keith, both of them breathing hard. Keith had been staring up at the ceiling but he turned his head to look at Lance when he felt his eyes on him.

“What?” Keith's voice was still too breathy to have any edge to it.

“You're so fucking hot,” Lance breathed. “Holy hell. It's not fair for you to be this hot.”

“Fucking, up shutting--” Keith babbled. His eyes fell on Lance's mouth and he covered his face with an arm, clearly embarrassed. Lance laughed and tried to pull Keith's arm back down.

“Aww, c'mon—”

“No.” Keith let Lance move his arm but still stubbornly refused to meet his gaze. This only encouraged Lance to move closer and push their foreheads together.

“Baaabe.”

“Shut up. You're so embarrassing.”

“Yeah, I am.” Lance kissed his nose. “How about you? Was that... okay?”

“Yeah.” Keith finally looked back at him. He seemed a bit nervous, but pleased all the same, and he smiled softly. “That was... really, really good.”

Lance felt his heart do a somersault in his chest and he smiled back. He felt so lucky to be lying next to Keith like this. Keith, with his clever eyes and wonderful smile.

“I lov--” Lance caught himself halfway through the sentence and choked on his own tongue. Keith stared at him, eyes wide.

“Did you just-”

“Nope!”

“You did!”

“I didn't!”

“Well, good!” Keith pulled his hands out of Lance's and crossed his arms over his chest. “Because it definitely wouldn't count if you did something as corny as say it after sex.”

“Of course not!” Lance sat up and started shimmying back into his pants. “That is definitely not a thing that I would do!”

“Glad we're on the same page!”

“I'm going to get a snack!” Lance continued loudly, pulling his shirt over his head. “Would you also care for one?!”

“Yes, that would be great!” Keith replied at the same volume. He sat up to kiss Lance before he left for the kitchen.

  
  


-4-

  
  


The doors to the loading bay wouldn't hold for much longer. Keith had stuck his bayard into the access panel but it was only a matter of time until they were pried open by the sentries. Lance coughed wetly from where he was propped up against some crates. Keith saw the blood at the corner of his mouth and swore.

“Pidge, we could really use that pickup right about now!” Keith tried to keep the panic out of his voice. He heard the echo of an explosion both through the intercom in his helmet and outside of the loading bay. Pidge was close, but not close enough.

“Hang on!” Pidge grunted through the static. “I'm almost there!”

Lance opened his mouth to say something but coughed again, this time obviously trying to hide the blood from Keith. The wound in his side didn't look that deep, but he wouldn't stop bleeding.

“Shit, shit.” Keith pressed his hands over Lance's on top of the makeshift bandage. “This is all my fault. Lance, I-”

“It's okay,” Lance said but his smile was strained. “Pidge will be here soon. And I've definitely had worse.” He tried to laugh but it turned into a wince and his hand shook under Keith's.

“I'm so sorry.” Keith's voice cracked and angry tears began to well in his eyes. First Shiro and now Lance. When would he stop killing the people he cared about? He heard the creak of the bay doors being inched open.

“Hey, calm down.” Lance put his hand on Keith's shoulder. The gesture only made Keith feel worse.

“Shut up, I should be the one reassuring you!” Keith wanted desperately to kiss him just then and felt irrationally mad at their helmets. “Lance... Lance, I--”

“Nope,” Lance gripped Keith's shoulder more tightly, “It doesn't count if you say it in a near-death situation.”

“Fuck you,” Keith snapped. He ducked his head so that Lance wouldn't see how close he was to crying. “Fuck you, then. You're gonna be fine.”

“Of course I am,” Lance said. “And after I get out of the cryo-pod, we're gonna have a three-day sex--”

“I'm still here, assholes!” Pidge shouted.

  
  


-5-

  
  


“What if we both say it at the same time?”

“What?” Keith almost laughed but then considered Lance's offer. “That's... actually not a terrible idea.”

“You're not a terrible idea!” Lance paused. “Oh wait, you're agreeing with me.”

“Yep. Weird, right?”

“Definitely.”

Keith turned on the couch to face Lance, crossing his legs underneath him. “Okay, so how do you want to do this?”

“We could, um, do a countdown.” Lance scooted closer so that they could hold hands. He rubbed his thumbs over Keith's knuckles. “Ready?”

“Yeah. Okay.” Keith squeezed Lance's hands.

“Three,” they said together, “Two... One...!”

Both of them were silent.

“Jerk!”

“You didn't say it either!”

“But it was your idea!”

“Yeah, well...!” Lance made an exasperated sound. “You already know that I love you, so what does it matter if I don't say it at the right moment?!”

Keith fell silent. His face reddened to match his jacket.

“Uh, are you guys still playing?” Hunk piped up from where he was seated on the floor with the Jenga tower.

  
  


-1-

  
  


“Come in!” Lance called when he heard the knock. He was already in his pajamas and dangling over the side of his bed, looking at a magazine that lay open on the floor. The door to his room slid open to reveal Keith.

“Hey,” Keith said. He hesitated before stepping over the threshold to enter Lance's room.

“Hey, man. Since when do you knock?” Lance teased him and flipped a page in the magazine.

Keith shrugged. He sat down next to Lance and glanced at what he was reading. “What is that?”

“I think it's a celebrity gossip magazine. I picked it up the last time we went to that space mall.” Lance shrugged and rolled onto his side so that he could look up at Keith. “Something up?”

“Not really.” Keith scratched at the bed sheets. “Can I sleep in here tonight?”

“Uh, yeah. Of course.”

Lance didn't know where Keith's sudden timidness was coming from, but he thought it was a good sign that he wasn't shutting himself up in his room. He got off the bed and took his time putting the magazine away so that he wasn't just staring while Keith undressed to his shirt and underwear. They turned out the light and slipped into bed. Keith curled against Lance's back, draping an arm over his waist so that they could hold hands.

“Goodnight, Keith.” Lance smiled and closed his eyes.

“Goodnight, Lance.” Keith kissed his neck. “ _Te amo._ ”

“WHAT!” Lance squawked and flailed, nearly knocking the back of his head into Keith's nose.

“Careful!” Keith tried to hold him still, but Lance squirmed in his arms until they were facing.

“When did you learn Spanish?” Lance demanded.

“I watched you reenact four seasons of that soap opera _Corazones de la Playa_ ,” Keith said defensively. “Did you really think I wouldn't pick any of it up?”

“Aww, babe,” Lance cooed, “You took an interest in my interests!”

“I just want Luchia to be happy,” Keith grumbled. “Javier doesn't deserve her.”

“I know, right?!” Lance smiled and kissed him. “You're so fucking great.”

“Shut up and go to sleep.”

“I love you too, _querido_.”

 


End file.
